(guest post by Lynnet Kwamboka)
The bathroom is one of the important rooms in a home. Perhaps the reason why most homeowners consider upgrading the bath during home remodels. Such types of home makeover projects tend to dent your savings account, but you can practice several tips to save cash when remodeling the bathroom. Besides, a DIY approach is an excellent and practical means of reducing the costs while incorporating a personal signature to the overall look.
The secret to saving money is to look at the bigger picture clearly and making the right decision, depending on your financial capability. However, it would help if you remembered that one homeowner's choice of upgrades might not necessarily suit the needs of another. For instance, updating the cabinets and showers is a less expensive home renovation project but may not work for a property owner who requires a full bathroom replacement.
Plan Before Your Start
Many homeowners show the reluctance to work with professional home renovation contractors like architects and designers because they think it increases their expenditure. In fact, it is money well spent. A professional will help you set realistic home remodeling goals, budget and timeline, which helps you avoid errors. Especially for inexperienced homeowners, professionals can save time and money.
Frame Your Mirror
One of the features that first meets the eye of anyone entering the bathroom is the mirror above the sink. As the focal point, the mirror needs to look eye-catching and fancy. Adding a frame is an excellent way of adding a visual appeal to the mirror. It also helps in veiling age-related wear-n-tear along the mirror's edges. Other practical ideas for upgrading your bathroom mirror include adding shelves below the mirror to add extra storage space or adding subtle lighting around the window to eliminate shadow under your eyes and chin while adding a personal style.
Retain the Plumbing System Where It Is
To keep your bathroom remodeling budget on the low, it would help if you partnered with reputable home renovation contractors. Using your existing plumbing system will save you a lot of cash, and your designers and builders can upgrade the bathroom without changing the conduit network. According to Justin Riordan, relocating the plumbing system costs about $5,000, and you can save that simply using your existing system.
Retain the Size and Layout of the Bathroom
Changing the bathroom layout means moving some sections of the plumbing system, the toilet discharge, and the sewer system. Such works can expand your budget significantly. Rearranging objects and moving them to a different location is particularly expensive, which should only be considered if necessary to suit the homeowner's needs and preferences. You may be at liberty to alter your bathroom's layout and size, but it would be best to weigh the benefits of such a change against costs involved in executing the change.
Don't Bring Down Load-Bearing Walls
Load-bearing walls are built to hold the second floor and roofing in a home. Bringing down and reconstructing load-bearing walls is an expensive affair that can usurp considerable amounts of cash. Try expanding your bathroom space by relocating non-load-bearing walls, such as the interior walls that run parallel to ceiling joists. These can be removed at a pocket-friendly budget than their load-bearing counterparts.
Replace Your Vanity
For a seasoned home remodeling enthusiasts, flea markets, antique stores, and resellers are an excellent source of beautiful home improvement accessories. In that case, you can head out and shop for a stand-alone, rustic dresser to replace your old bathroom vanity. It's an ideal project for DIY'ers as they can easily use it for different functions: to hide their plumbing system, seal drawers, and hang towel bars on the side.
Update the Toilet – Don't Invest in a New Bowl
If you are the budget-centric homeowner, here is something that you need to understand: When doing home remodels, consider replacing the lid and toilet seat instead of splurging considerable cash on the entire porcelain perch. By simply changing the two tops, you can refresh your bath's look without breaking the bank. It alleviates the need for complicated plumbing installations.
Refinish, Don't Replace
Removing and replacing your existing plumbing connections, bathtubs, and showers requires a big budget because it involves demolitions and reconstruction projects. You need to ask yourself: "I'm I making these changes to improve the aesthetics or functionality of the bathroom?" For visual appeal, you can upgrade these fixtures by dressing them up instead of replacing them. Hence, refinish your tub with an eye-catching, protective coating or repaint the bathroom cabinetry rather than installing new cabinets.
Skip Floor-to-Ceiling Tiles
We all agree that tiles are an excellent home improvement material that enhances the look of any interior space. Even so, do not have the bathroom floors and walls covered with tiles. Break the tile monotony by using different materials, such as reclaimed wood panels. These come in a range of textures and finishes that add warmth and rustic character while contrasting excellently with white fixtures and other minimalistic elements in the bath.
Try Installing Open Shelves
The bathroom is a private room with limited space, but installing open shelves creates a visual illusion of a much storage room in smaller square footage. Using open shelves is less costly than installing new cabinets. You can add drawers and covered baskets to store your private items and undergarments. On the flip side, you may want to show off your bathroom décor, beautiful towels, and colorful soaps in the open shelves. To add an attractive aspect to it, ensure that every item and element on each shelf is clean and well-arranged.
The bathroom is the first room in your home that you enter when you wake up and return home. You may want to remodel the bath, but the budget for purchasing new renovation materials and décor can be huge. The good news is that you don't need to replace it. Instead, look for ways to upgrade or dress up the bathroom elements by being creative and utilize other budget fixtures from antique shops and home improvement stores.
Editor's Note: Lynnet Kwamboka is a writer for HelloProject.